Deception
by DarkHonour
Summary: ONE-SHOT. Wishing to see Shirou again, the aged Sakura sees Archer/Shirou instead. Heaven's Feel normal ending; Archer/Shirou X Sakura.


A/N: I was watching the YouTube ending for Heaven's Feel (the normal one) and I thought I'd just write a simple fic on it.

Parings: Archer/Shirou X Sakura (sorry to the Archer X Rin fans out there)

Disclaimer: The characters of fate/stay night belong to TYPE-MOON and Kinoko Nasu.

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Deception  
_by DarkHonour_

Matou Sakura stood before a white haired man. She had not seen him in years yet he had changed so much.

She coughed out, with a glut of blood ejected from her mouth.

Looking down with her purple eyes, she could see the sharp blade of a sharp sword protuding from her chest.

A black masked man was holding the sword impaled into her from behind.

Yet she smiled at the man whom she had not seen for ages. His look was contrary to hers. He had a shocked expression at the moment of what had just happened.

The masked man pulled back his blood stained sword with a single stroke, vanishing away into the darkness of the night.

Drops of blood began to drip rapidly from Sakura's body, collecting on the floor.

'Sakura!'

He held her quickly, taking off his red cloak to tie her wound tight.

'It's okay, Shirou,' she laid on the floor as he tried to tie the wound. She raised her hand, touching his face.

He was Emiya Shirou. She had not seen him for a few years, thinking he was dead.

But the purpled-haired girl was glad that he had come back from the dead.

'I'm really glad you came back for me,' she smiled back at him. She was beginning to feel the coldness of the night as her blood continued to stain her signature petticoat and dress.

'I'll take you to Tohsaka now!' He carried her up immediately and began to run along the street pavement. The Tohsaka mage knew of healing magic that could save Sakura's life.

'Don't sleep,' he ordered her as he ran rapidly across the pavement.

'You changed a lot, Shirou,' she replied weakly. She looked at his face. No longer was there the sign of his youth on his face, but it was one that looked more adult and it was coupled with white hair.

'Don't talk anymore,' he refused to accept anymore of her words. 'You'll get better!'

'Shirou...' she continued weakly, holding on to his body. 'It's such a cooling night...'

He ignored her. He knew that he had to get her to her sister to get her fatal wound healed before it was too late.

Making a pact with the world did not end his life immediately as he had thought. He was just a human with enhanced abilities. Yet, these enhanced abilities could not bring himself as fast as possible to the Tohsaka mansion.

'I...' Sakura's voice was getting weaker.

As he held Sakura closer to him, he could feel her pulse getting weaker and weaker. The attacker was a masked servant. It was definitely of an assassin class.

Shirou would not admit that the attacker had did a direct impalement through the heart.

'...love you, Shirou,' she answered before releasing her arms from his neck. Her left arm gave way and swung free from her body.

He stopped in his tracks. In his eyes reflected by the light of the nearby streetlamp, were of fear and shock.

The girl who had always came to take care of him before the fifth war was gone.

Failure filled his heart.

He could save some yet others would be sacrificed. Even though he had just made a pact with the world to save a few hundred people, another person had just passed on before his eyes.

Not only before his eyes, but in his arms.

He turned his head to look at Sakura again. She was smiling. In death, she was still happy for him.

'Sakura...'

The stillness of night and the flickering lamplight only accompanied him on the street.

***

The sun shone bright, basking the flowers in sunlight.

An old lady tended to the flowers. She had a straw hat to protect her from the strong rays of the sun. She was smiling as she looked at the thriving flowers.

As she turned her head up, she could see that it was already spring. Soon, she could wait for the special day again.

'I'll be waiting again,' she talked to the sakura trees in the distance. 'Shirou.'

It had been many years since the events of the 5th Holy Grail war ended. Many many years. In fact, it was decades.

The boy who told her he would come back to see the sakuras with her, had made a promise to her.

That boy was Emiya Shirou.

It had been many springs but he had not returned to her. She was now greying and still waiting for him.

Many suitors had approached in the years after but she had rejected all of them.

For the sake of Shirou, she would wait for him no matter how long it took.

Year after year, he was still not present. But she dreamt of him almost every night.

In the distance, a spiritual entity was observing her. He was in spirit form, looking at the aged woman.

This white-haired man knew he was not supposed to be here.

But he had a sudden request to fulfill the last wish for this woman – Emiya Shirou.

No matter how old she looked, Sakura was still the purple-haired girl he knew.

'Sakura,' he whispered as he continued observing her.

Soon, before he knew it, it was nightfall. Being an eternal entity, passing time was already a second nature. He could no longer sense how it felt to pass time.

All he knew was that being back here, his memories of Sakura came back too.

The time was near. He could hear coughing from within the house. As he slided the door opened, a sense of familarity filled him.

This was formerly his house. But it was not in this parallel world.

Archer walked slowly across the wooden floor, making creaks as he took slow steps across it. The moon now shone brightly, illuminating the corridors. His red cloak flowing with the air, he made his way to the room.

This room was Sakura's. All the same in each parallel world, he had designated it for the purple haired girl.

Standing before the exterior of the room, he could hear a little coughing from inside.

Sliding open the door, his figure filled the light behind him. The old woman in the room got up from her mattress, looking at the figure.

'Shirou...?'

'Sakura,' he was going to lie. That was the final wish of the Sakura here. She wanted to see Shirou before she went off. But the teenage Shirou had died in this world. He may not deceive her with his voice which was more adult.

'You're back...' the same voice trailed off. At this point, Archer could only imagine the old lady as the former young junior girl he once knew.

She got herself up, walking towards him. He stepped forward to hold her.

'You've changed, Shirou...' she looked at his eyes which were gazing at her. 'But I'm glad you came back for me.'

He had not heard that name in a long time. Archer was ashamed of his own name. He had held the name Emiya Shirou when he was a boy. When he made a pact with the world, he dropped his first name and only allowed others to call him EMIYA.

'Your arms are so warm...' she muttered as she clung close to Archer. The counter guardian felt a stirring in his heart. It had been a long time since he saw Sakura.

In this alternate world to him, this Sakura was alive and healthy. It was not like the cold, limp body he had held in his arms during his past.

'It's good you're still alive,' he muttered under his breath, whispering to her and hugging her tighter.

'I've always being staying alive for you,' she answered him. 'But...'

He knew that her wish had been fulfilled.

'It's time for me to go,' she responded softly. 'Thank you, Shirou.'

He pulled himself away from the embrace.

She looked at him again.

'I know that Shirou is not from this alternate world,' she spoke calmly.

'You knew it?'

Sakura nodded her head.

'I could feel your heart,' she placed her hand over her chest. 'I sensed pain and hurt.'

He averted her gaze, standing before her.

'Your Sakura must be waiting.'

'She's no longer around,' he answered her quickly.

'I'm sorry,' she walked forward, standing just a few centimetres before the white headed man. 'But...'

She placed her palm on Archer's chest where his heart was.

'That Sakura stays there.'

He held her frail arm.

'Even if we belong to different worlds,' she continued. 'I'm sure Sakura is always watching over you.'

'Sakura...'

'It's okay now,' she interrupted him, hugging him again. 'You're Shirou after all...'

She closed her eyes, feeling his warmth. It was the same warmth that Shirou had given her when he told her he would be back to watch the sakuras with her.

Except that it took so long for that to happen.

'Sakura,' he whispered, giving her an embrace again. The moonlight and stillness of the air were components of this night.

***

Archer slowly placed the long white cloth over Sakura's face. Her final wish was fulfilled and she could release her hold in this world now.

He was now more confident with the words said by Sakura in this world.

The Matou Sakura he know would always be watching over him.

The white haired counter guardian was very certain of it as he slided the door behind him and dematerialised into spirit form.

As he closed his eyes, he could only picture the girl who was always there for him and always smiling despite the sad interior she had.

It was true.

Sakura was always there for Shirou after all.

THE END

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End file.
